Sonic Unleashed Review
A Review - By Gaetano Prestia
Whenever a new Sonic title is announced, it automatically carries the burden of an entire franchise that hasn’t seen a good console title since its platforming days. What it comes down to is the fact that Sonic hasn’t made a successful transition to 3D. In fact, he’s failed miserably. Even after a number of terrible games over the past two generations, the blue hedgehog has still maintained his charismatic charm and appeal, yet the team at SEGA just haven’t been able to transfer him to a contemporary setting. With Sonic Unleashed, the developers have gone back to the drawing board, coming up with a title that mixes traditional platforming elements with 3D action and combat. We can’t help but ask – What took them so long?
Sonic Unleashed has been released across all major consoles with the Wii version being the far more superior. The 360 and PS3 versions suffer from inconsistent controls and lacking visuals, while the Wii version takes advantage of the Wii-mote and the consoles graphical capabilities. Throw in some new levels and you have a Sonic experience that exceeds everything we’ve seen from the blue speedster in the past few years.
Dr. Eggman returns to wreck havoc once again, shooting the planet with a giant ray gun that splits the planet in half and causes Sonic to experience weird side effects. Whenever the sun sets, Sonic transforms into a giant werehog and what you’re confronted with are a number of stages with repetitive combat and absolutely no challenge. While there are the same number of warehog and hedgehog levels, the werehog stages take far longer to complete as the combat is seemingly never-ending because of its incredibly boring and repetitive tendencies.
The Sonic levels are far more enjoyable, as they have you running at high speed through eight unique levels, each with their own challenging obstacles. What makes these levels so much fun is the incorporation of surprisingly tight controls that allow you to control Sonic with precision, even at high speeds. One of the major problems from previous Sonic encounters was the fact that you would continuously slam into walls or spikes, making frequent deaths during stages inevitable. Because of the improved controls, you’ll die far less often. Even if you do die, the game doesn’t punish you all that much, simply placing you into an earlier part of the stage or at the point that you died.
Furthermore, the levels can be replayed as often as you like, allowing you to set new record times or find secret pathways you missed the previous time. The Sonic levels are incredibly enjoyable and are probably the most fun you’ll have had in a Sonic game in a long, long time. The only downfall is that - although there are the same amount of Sonic levels as warehog levels – they don’t last that long and there isn’t anywhere near enough of them. The warehog levels take far longer to complete, whereas the Sonic levels can be completed within 20-30 minutes. It’s disappointing, as it seems that - with the improved implementation of the Wii controller and solid controls – the development team have finally hit the mark when it comes to Sonic in a 3D environment.
The warehog levels do offer limited enjoyment, so they’re not that bad. However, making the jump from speeding Sonic levels to slow warehog levels with repetitive and boring combat is a discouraging one. While the warehog levels have more platforming elements than combat ones, whenever you come across the enemy, the combat is so uninspiring, slow and tedious that you’ll just want to hurry up and get through them as quickly as possible. You’ll just be repeating the same moves over and over again and while some of the platforming elements - such as double jumping and grabbing with your long extending arm - can be fun, the combat offsets these and makes the warehog levels totally uninspiring.
Sonic Unleashed really shines in the Sonic levels on Wii. You can use any of the Wii compatible controllers (including the Classic controller and GameCube controller), as the controls are the same across the board. The only unique feature implemented into the Wii-mote is the flick of the wrist for a sprint. The gameplay is solid, accessible, responsive and overall, very fun.
The game shines graphically during the Sonic levels as you blast through the unique scenery. The graphics aren’t quite on par with the 360 and PS3 versions, but it still sports nice visuals with good textures, a decent framerate and vibrant colours.
The Final Verdict
Sonic Unleashed is an enjoyable, if not inconsistent, title. The Sonic levels are so much fun, with great controls, vibrant graphics and plenty of challenge to keep you coming back. But then the game does a complete 180 for the warehog levels, with repetitive and boring combat with some decent platforming elements. It’s as if they’re two completely different games. The title goes from a quick and deeply enjoyable title, to a generic, basic tedious combat title after only one stage before it switches over again. Still, Sonic Unleashed implements improved 3D elements for Sonic, an area that the cool blue hedgehog has failed in the past.
Gameplay
7.0/10
It’s a step in the right direction for a battered franchise. The Sonic levels are a lot of fun with great controls. The warehog levels bring the title down.
Graphics
7.0/10
Nice environments and effects and a steady framerate.
Audio
7.5/10
A nice soundtrack that compliments that look and feel of the title.
Value
8.5/10
The single-player campaign will take you about 10-11 hours to complete, but you’ll want to go back to the Sonic levels to beat your previous time and find shortcuts.
Overall
7.5/10